


Wait For Me (I'm Coming)

by Waddles889



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Bittersweet, Campaign: Balance (The Adventure Zone), Dorks in Love, F/M, Hurt No Comfort, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, Inspired by Hadestown, Inspired by Orpheus and Eurydice (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore), Music, References to Ancient Greek Religion & Lore, The Astral Plane, i don't know how to describe the au ive created here but just know that it's kinda wack
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-22
Updated: 2020-04-22
Packaged: 2021-03-01 22:00:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,779
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23784298
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Waddles889/pseuds/Waddles889
Summary: In the end, no one was surprised that Lup and Barry fell in love.At first glance, yeah, it might’ve been a shock to find out that a man who looked like he was born to be an accountant, complete with square glasses and a receding hairline had ended up with the most ethereal, punk rock lady anyone had ever seen, but for those that knew them, it was only a matter of time.ORBarry and Lup in place of Orpheus and Eurydice.
Relationships: Barry Bluejeans/Lup
Kudos: 5





	1. Wedding Song

**Author's Note:**

> sorry in advance

In the end, no one was surprised that Lup and Barry fell in love.

At first glance, yeah, it might’ve been a shock to find out that a man who looked like he was born to be an accountant, complete with square glasses and a receding hairline had ended up with the most ethereal, punk rock lady anyone had ever seen, but for those that knew them, it was only a matter of time.

Barry plucked the strings of his lyre, humming tunes to himself. The sun beat down relentlessly, but the trees offered some small comfort, their leaves rustling gently in a slight breeze. Lup grinned.

“How is it that even when you’re just messing around, you create the most wonderful music?” She was lounging on a rock that Barry was sitting up against. Her hair occasionally got in Barry’s face, but he didn’t mind.

“I don’t know what you mean,” he said, idly strumming.

“Can’t you see it?” Lup asked. She sat up and Barry twisted to look at her as she gestured around them. “The world is responding to you.”

Barry did not see it.

“Keep playing.”

He did, this time keeping a careful watch on their surroundings. As he sang, the trees and the flowers leaned towards him. The birds paused in their calls. The brook’s babbling slowed.

Barry’s eyes widened.

“Do you know what this means?” he whispered, as the last notes of his song faded and nature resumed its original state.

Lup hummed in questioning.

“If my music has this much influence, I could change the world.”

“Yeah,” Lup breathed. She reflected on this. “Or you could use it to get  _ so  _ much money.”

“Lup! I was being serious!”

Lup laughed.

Barry thought that sound was more beautiful than any music.

~~~

Istus herself showed up to their wedding.

Lup would’ve liked to say it went off without a hitch, but Merle was officiating. Magnus challenged Davenport to an arm wrestle, which ended in a table flipping over. Taako yelled at them for ruining all the food on said table, and Barry tripped over Lup during their dance.

It was perfect.

Barry played his song during the reception. It was even more stunning in the banquet hall. The melody filled the room, reverberating through the walls and the floor, and the light in the room grew brighter. Lup felt it deep in her chest. The vines that crept up the wall reached towards him, trying to get closer to the source of the music. 

The applause that came afterwards was deafening. Lup threw her arms around Barry and kissed him until they were out of breath.

Istus smiled, but her eyes were sad.

“What’s wrong, Lady Fate?” Lup asked. Her hands grew clammy and her heart began to race. For what reason, she wasn’t sure.

Istus placed her tapestry down and looked Barry in the eye. “Your happiness won’t last for long.”

A chill swept over the room.

“I’m sorry.”

~~~

No one talked about the incident at the wedding.

Instead, there was a housewarming party. 

The cottage was small, but it was perfect for the two of them. It took a few months of getting accustomed, but after that it felt as though they’d been living there for years. 

One particular night, Lup found Barry outside, strumming his lyre and transcribing the notes he played.

“What are you doing, babe?”

He looked up at her with hopeful eyes. “I’m writing a song that’s going to change the world,” he said. “I’m close, I can feel it.”

Lup laughed and gently pulled the lyre out of his hands. “Maybe you can finish tomorrow. It’s nearly midnight, goofus.”

Barry smiled. He rubbed his eyes and took her hand. “Yeah. I’ll finish it.”

The next day, Lup awoke to the sound of a piano.

“Woah dude, it’s like five in the morning, what gives?”

The piano melody stopped. “Sorry, Lup! I just had a breakthrough and I had to try it out. See, the song works better on the piano than it ever did on the lyre. I’d like to add another part, but I might have to do that separately… You know, there’s only so much I can do while playing the piano-”

Lup cut him off with a kiss.

“You’ll figure it out, Barold, I’m sure of it. Want some breakfast, or do you survive entirely off changing the world, one note at a time?”

Barry laughed and playfully shoved her away. “Breakfast is good. Need any help?”

“Oooooh no, you are  _ not  _ coming  _ anywhere  _ near my kitchen. Not after the brownie incident.”

“Alright, that’s fair.”

The piano resumed. Lup softly hummed a melody to accompany it, turning it into a song as she pulled pans and spatulas and flour from the cupboards. 

Barry’s tune trailed away.

“Can you play an instrument?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> comment please i crave validation


	2. Wait For Me

Barry’s music couldn’t fix everything. At least, it couldn’t erase Lup’s mistakes.

The gauntlet was created for protection, but those who used it were overcome with a horrible, twisted temptation and only used it for destruction. Tales of glass circles and leveled towns made their way back to Lup. 

Guilt washed over her like a tidal wave. 

Barry might change the world with his music eventually, but Lup couldn’t sit by and watch idly as the product of her hubris tore kingdoms apart one by one, leaving only ash in its wake. She had to take matters into her own hands.

The night was young and the breeze was biting. The moonlight was scarce, but it was enough to illuminate the path in front of Lup. She pulled her cloak tighter around herself and resisted the urge to look back. Barry would still be there when she returned. Besides, she wouldn’t be gone long.

Just long enough to fix everything.

Leaves crunched underfoot. Lup focused on the sound of the wind whistling through the trees to distract herself from the music that drifted from the cottage. Eventually, the notes faded into the distance.

Phandalin wasn’t far, about an hour’s walk from their home. Lup welcomed the warmth and light from the lamp posts and headed for the tavern. It was common knowledge that quests were in huge supply in taverns.

The building was rife with laughter, bathed in orange light. Someone pounded away on the piano in the corner, goading a band of bards into singing along. Pool balls clinked together. Shouts erupted, either of triumph or rage. 

Lup grinned.

She bought herself a whiskey and slid into a booth that was occupied by a seedy looking dwarf, nursing a beer.

“Can I help you?” he asked in a voice so gravelly it grated against Lup’s ears. She plastered on a shiny smile.

“I was wondering if I could help  _ you, _ ” she said. “Cyrus Rockseeker, I presume?”

Cyrus huffed. “You saw the ad, then.”

Lup nodded.

He looked her up and down. “What do you bring to the table?”

“I’m the most accomplished evocation wizard you’ll ever have the pleasure of meeting,” she said, folding her arms on the table. “What time do we leave?”

A beat. The flickering light cast long shadows across Cyrus’ scarred face, and he grimaced. “Alright,” he said, downing the rest of his beer. “Let’s not waste time.”

It didn’t take long to track the gauntlet down. It didn’t take much to secure it, either. A couple of well aimed firebolts and Lup was picking the glove out of the ashes.

Cyrus raised his eyebrows. “You weren’t kidding.”

Lup smiled and did not correct his assumptions.

The moon was low in the sky, purple and orange breaking over the east. The warbling of the morning songbirds felt wrong with such a powerful weapon held gingerly in Lup’s hands. 

It was worth it, though. Barry wore himself ragged trying to fix the world with melodies. It was the least Lup could do to fix it in her own way. 

“A gauntlet this powerful won’t be destroyed easily,” Lup said.

“We’ll lock it up, then.”

Cyrus chose Wave Echo Cave as their destination. “My family’s vault is there,” he said. It didn’t matter where it was kept, in Lup’s eyes. As long as it was hidden, it couldn’t hurt anyone anymore, and that was one less thing that Barry had to worry about in his songs.

The cave was just west of Phandalin. It was sprawling, seemingly stretching on for miles. True to its name, sounds of waves echoed through its twisting chambers. Minecarts and tools lined the walls, but they looked as though they hadn’t been touched in thousands of years, grimy from disuse. Cyrus had some kind of influence over it, lighting the way for them as they made their way through the endless corridors.

Lup had no idea how late it was. If she wasn’t careful, she might break her promise to Barry, but the weapon in her hands demanded her full attention. Gravel crunched underfoot. They were close. She was almost free of the glove’s influence.

The shadows cast by the flickering lights warped and distorted the path in front of her. Lup grit her teeth and tightened her grip on the gauntlet. 

She knew something was wrong before she could fully process it.

The steps behind her faltered.

A coat swished.

The tip of a dagger dipped in silver-point poison plunged into Lup’s back.

It was all Lup could do to push Cyrus into the vault and seal him inside before she collapsed, smearing the wall with blood and venom. 

~~~

_ Back soon. _

The note was creased, soft around the edges, sealed with a kiss. Barry smiled every time he saw it, a casual reminder that his wife still existed and was on her way back. Sometimes, he would stop and look at it. He memorized her handwriting, the folds down the middle, the fading scent of her lipstick. Just a glimpse of the pink paper in passing was enough to make his heart flutter.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


It wasn’t until a week had passed that he realized she wasn’t coming back.

  
  
  
  


After that, he couldn’t bear to look at that note. It was a horrible reminder. The scent of her lipstick was gone.

He couldn’t bear to throw it away, either.

Barry’s songs went untouched for days, weeks, months. How could he think of music when Lup was missing?

He scoured the land, marking off map after map, but there was no luck. It was like she had just vanished off the face of the planet. 

Dejectedly, with no other leads, he grabbed his sheet music off of the piano, looking for some sort of distraction.

Barry rubbed his eyes, staring down at the paper in front of him.

“What if she’s just gone?” he whispered to no one in particular.

  
  
  
  
  


“She isn’t.”

Barry whirled around. A woman was sitting on his couch, with locks of glowing white hair falling over her shoulders.

“Lady Istus?”

Istus looked up from her knitting. Her needles were wrapped in golden yarn. “She isn’t gone, Barry.”

“I don’t understand.”

“The astral plane,” Istus said.

Barry froze, eyes widening. He could feel his heart starting to pound.

“How do I get there?”

But Istus was gone.

Barry looked back down at his sheet music.

“Right.”

He pulled on a cloak and packed a couple of weapons, some rations, and his music into a bag. There was no sense in waiting, now. He knew where she was, and he was going to get her back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> we're boutta get into Sad Territory


	3. Salut D'amour

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> uh oh

Lup was cold.

She felt as though she were drifting on a great lake, numb to everything around her.

The world around her was absent of music.

~~~

Barry had been walking for days.

Occasionally, he’d come across another traveler. They’d swap stories and part as potential friends that would never meet again. Every time, Barry was met with pity and soft, empty words of comfort. He dismissed this. He didn’t need pity. He was getting Lup back.

Finally, he met someone different.

A halfling with petals in her hair and tree bark for skin smiled as he recounted his tale. She placed a hand on his shoulder, fire in her eyes. 

“I’ve heard of a boulder that blocks the only entrance to the Underworld on the material plane. It only moves for music. If you can spin up a song like the story you told me, I have no doubt that it will open for you.”

“Thank you,” said Barry.

“There is nothing more beautiful than love that transcends mortality,” said the dryad.

Barry continued.

~~~

Lup was losing her grip. Her memories slipped away one by one. She held on tighter.

~~~

The boulder rolled aside. Barry breathed a sigh of relief. The dryad had been right.

Before him, the ground sloped into a tunnel that went down as far as the eye could see. It was carved straight into the rock. A railroad track followed the line of the tunnel, gleaming in the distant light shining from what Barry could only assume was the astral plane itself. Water dripped from the ceiling and flowed in rivulets alongside the railroad track.

Barry adjusted his pack on his shoulders and started down the path.

Every step he took echoed, alerting anyone who was listening to his presence. He hummed under his breath and quickened his pace. 

The note, carefully folded and stored in his pocket, grew heavier.

The boulder was no longer visible behind him.

The farther he walked, the colder the air. The colder the air, the more visible each exhale. Whispers filled his ears and echoed through the tunnel, chilling him to the bone.

Barry pressed on.

~~~

Lup heard singing.

~~~

The end of the tunnel was visible.

Barry stepped out onto a dark lake with a glass-like surface.

He hadn’t planned for what he would do once he’d reached the astral plane, but he didn’t need to worry about that after all.

“Babe!” Lup yelled, running towards him at full speed. Water splashed everywhere, but she didn’t care. 

Barry forgot himself and opened his arms wide. Lup crashed into him and he wrapped her in a tight embrace. She hugged him back, squeezing him until he couldn’t breathe. He didn’t complain, drinking in her scent and basking in the glow she brought into every room she was in simply by existing. He didn’t want to let go.

“I’m gonna smooch your brains out,” Lup said. Barry laughed, tears welling up in his eyes.

Someone cleared their throat.

Slowly, mechanically, the pair broke from their embrace.

Standing a few feet away, clad in a black robe, scythe in hand, was a strikingly handsome man. Gold glittered in his braided hair. His eyes glowed in the unearthly light of the Underworld’s lake.

“I’d hate to break up such a touching reunion,” he said in a questionable accent, “but it’s kind of against the laws of life and death.”

Lup’s hands ignited in flame. “Want to try that again, idiot?”

The man stepped back. “I’m sorry, but you’re dead. You can’t leave the astral plane. Not to mention, I’d have to do a lot of paperwork.”

“Look, whatever your name is-” Barry started.

“It’s Kravitz.”

“Look, Kravitz, I walked down to the astral plane from Phandalin. I came here to get my wife back and I’m not leaving without her.”

Kravitz looked between the two of them. He sighed.

“Alright, but we have to check in with the Raven Queen first. I doubt she’ll allow it, but you can try.”

~~~

Barry and Lup stood before the Raven Queen’s throne in her palace of ornately carved obsidian walls, hand in hand. She was easily eighty feet tall, face covered with a white mask resembling that of a plague doctor, plumed with raven feathers. Her ebony hair rippled in non-existent wind.

Barry stepped forward and knelt at her feet.

“My name is Barry Bluejeans. I have journeyed for weeks without rest. I’ve walked down the railroad track. I want nothing more than to be reunited with my wife. I love her more than anything else in the world. I can’t bear to lose her. Please, let her return to the material plane with me.”

Lup placed a hand on Barry’s shoulder. He smiled back at her.

The Raven Queen did not respond. She didn’t even move. Barry’s heart dropped.

Kravitz frowned, glancing up at the Raven Queen before turning back to face the two of them.

“Please,” Barry whispered.

Kravitz swallowed. “Look, I- there are rules set in place, we can’t break them like this. I know you came all this way, which is admittedly more than what’s been done before, but-”

**YOUR MUSIC MOVES BOULDERS, DOES IT NOT?** The Raven Queen asked.

Barry frowned for a moment, but nodded. “Yes, your Majesty.”

**WE WILL MAKE A DEAL WITH YOU.** ****

A grin spread across Kravitz’s face. “Oh, good, I love deals.”

**PLAY US A SONG, BARRY BLUEJEANS, AND PERHAPS WE WILL LET YOU AND YOUR WIFE RETURN TO THE MATERIAL PLANE. WHAT INSTRUMENTS WILL YOU REQUIRE?**

Barry looked at Lup and then down at his sheet music. “A piano,” he said, “and a violin.”

Lup laughed. “Yes!”

The instruments rose from the floor in a plume of smoke. Barry took his place at the piano and Lup took her place beside him, raising the violin to her shoulder. They exchanged a nod and began to play.

Music filled the hall. Kravitz exhaled in wonder. It was unlike anything in the astral plane, unlike anything in the entire planar system itself. The palace walls reverberated with the song and everything else seemed to stop. Time itself slowed to accommodate it. There was romance in every measure, longing in every note. Barry and Lup listened to each other intently, their instruments blending into a perfect duet. 

It drew to a close and they grabbed each other’s hands to bow.

Kravitz applauded with a grin.

**THAT WAS LOVELY,** the Raven Queen said.  **YOU MAY GO.**

Lup laughed in delight. “Really?” 

“Thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you,” Barry cried. He threw his arms around Lup, hugging her to his chest. If he soaked her robe with his tears, well, no one needed to know. “Lup, oh jeez, Lup.”

“Shut up, dork,” she said, but she was crying too. 

Barry took her hand and started towards the doors.

**THERE IS ONE THING YOU NEED TO KNOW BEFORE YOU LEAVE.** The Raven Queen’s voice took on a chill.

**YOU CANNOT WALK BACK HAND IN HAND. SHE MUST WALK BEHIND YOU. IF YOU TURN AROUND TO MAKE SURE SHE IS FOLLOWING, SHE’LL BE SENT BACK TO THE ASTRAL PLANE AND YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO RETRIEVE HER AGAIN.**

Barry and Lup exchanged a glance.

“Is this a trick?” Lup asked.

“The Raven Queen doesn’t play tricks,” Kravitz said. “It’s a test. A trust exercise.”

Barry squeezed Lup’s hand. “We’ll get through this.”

They started towards the doors once more.

“Good luck,” Kravitz said. Lup nodded.

Barry stood in front of the tunnel. Lup pressed a kiss to his cheek.

“I’ll see you once we’re out,” she said.

Barry stepped into the tunnel. Lup followed behind.

If the journey to the astral plane had been unnerving, the journey out was worse. There was no light to promise a destination. Barry could barely see in front of him. The whispers were louder now, frantic. Barry kept walking.

Each step echoed along the passage. He kept his eyes fixed on the railroad tracks, counting each board as he passed it. A chill ran down his spine and he almost turned instinctively, but reason took over before he could completely jeopardize his mission.

He had to keep going.

With the light behind him, his shadow stretched forward like a spider. Barry grit his teeth and forced himself to ignore the atmosphere. This was a test. This was a trust exercise. He had to believe they would make it out.

Barry started to hum.

The whispers grew louder. They filled his ears like static, sending shivers down his spine. He couldn’t see where he was going.

How much was considered turning around? Surely he could glance to the side to catch sight of Lup in his peripheral vision, right? Just to make sure she was really there.

“No, that’s dumb,” Barry hissed. He couldn’t risk it.

He pressed on, singing louder to drown out his anxieties.

It was slow going for a while. The farther they walked, the less the light lit their path from behind. Luckily, it was growing warmer the closer to the surface they got.

Barry’s footsteps seemed to echo even louder now.

He shook his head and forced himself to walk faster. They were getting close.

And there, up ahead, he saw it. Sunlight filtered in around the boulder that blocked the entrance. He just had to get it to move again and they’d be out.

The whispers faded. The only sound now was Barry’s footsteps.

Wait.

Why couldn’t he hear Lup?

The tunnel walls were made of rock. Every little sound echoed. He’d been hearing his footsteps the entire time he’d been walking, so where were Lup’s footsteps?

Barry could see his shadow stretching out before him, but Lup cast no shadow of her own.

His pace slowed.

Kravitz said there were laws put in place to keep the dead from leaving the astral plane. There were laws of life and death to be upheld.

Lup wasn’t casting a shadow or making any sound at all.

How could he have been so  _ stupid?  _ His music couldn’t change the world. It couldn’t change the mind of a goddess. His music didn’t change anything at all.

Lup never left the astral plane. It was a trick. Of course the Raven Queen wouldn’t break her laws just for them. What was he  _ thinking? _

The exit was so close, but what was the point if it was a trick the entire time? Lup wasn’t with him at all.

He turned around.

Lup gasped. 

“It’s you,” Barry whispered. He felt his blood run cold. Fingers of ice crept through his veins and seized his heart. Lup was standing before him, red robe glowing in the slivers of sun that seeped in through the cracks in the rock. Her eyes were shining with tears.

“It’s me.”

No sound passed between them, and the tunnel was silent. Barry was frozen to the spot. His eyes stung. Lup inhaled shakily.

“Barry,” she whispered.

He reached towards her. She stretched her hand out to meet his.

“Lup…”

Lup laughed, which quickly turned into a sob. Barry gave her a watery smile.

Their fingers touched.

Lup was enveloped in threads of white light, and dissolved.

Barry was alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry again


End file.
